Wednesday, 28 June 2017

Standen, Jacques Delamain and Olivier Messaien

I like perusing the titles of
books in the libraries of large country houses. They give an impression of the
interests of previous owners of the house and, because of my liking for
Natural History, it is volumes on this subject that particularly catch my eye
[1,2,3].

Last week, I visited Standen
House, the country home of the Beale family from the end of the Nineteenth
Century. It has lovely gardens and the interior of the house is decorated in
Arts and Craft style and contains some very fine furniture [4]. As would be
expected in the library of a family with seven children - and, later, grandchildren - there
were many volumes about fairy tales and adventure, but the book that stood out
for me was The Days and Nights of Birds
by the French amateur ornithologist Jacques Delamain (the cover of my copy is
shown above). Ornithology has always been a popular pastime, and many books
have been written about the habits, and habitats, of birds. In the Foreword of The Days and Nights of Birds [5] Delamain
writes:

"But has
not everything essential been said about birds?" The question was put to
me one day by Abel Bonnard who was unwilling to see too narrow a limit imposed
on his keen poetical curiosity. I assured him that this subject, like all which
touch nature, was inexhaustible. Indeed, for the seeker, one discovery leads to
another and new problems appear which the mind tries to solve. The beauty of
living creatures and the setting in which they move, life's harmony and
complexity, always awake in us unexpected echoes. Intellectual curiosity, the
aesthetic sense and poetry never fail to renew the world.

Each one of us
follows his own way, seeking to understand the mystery of creation. For some,
the way grows endlessly broader, embracing vast horizons, others advance slowly
and shortsightedly along a narrow path. But no one can set out without
discovering riches..

We can see that Delamain's
interest in birds was wrapped up with his love of Nature and he communicated
this in an attractive prose style that is apparent even in translation. It is
easy to see how readers may be stimulated to look more closely at birds after reading
his books and Delamain concludes the Foreword by writing:

My first book, Why Birds Sing, brought me precious
assurance from my readers that I had taught them how better to observe Nature,
and how to love her more. If my present volume induces them to look once more
on the ever varied spectacle offered to our eyes by the seasons as they pass,
and increase their interest in the creatures that people our fields, woods and
rivers, it will have fulfilled its purpose.

One can imagine Mr Beale, or visitors
to Standen, reading the book and using it as a guide to their own observations
on walks in the garden or around the estate.

The writings of Delamain influenced
many others, including the composer Olivier Messaien. Messiaen was fascinated
by birdsong and Hill and Simeone [6] describe the result of his visit to Delamain's
home La Branderaie de Gardépéé(see above):

In April 1952,..
.. Messaien took what proved to be a decisive step. At the suggestion of his
publisher Leduc he paid a short visit (15-17 April) to Jacques Delamain, a
leading ornithologist and prolific author. Delamain lived in south-west France,
his house at Gardépéé set in large wooded grounds midway
between Cognac and the neighbouring town of Jarnac, where the Delamain family
firm still produces brandy. Delamain's tuition enabled Messaien's knowledge of ornithology
to catch up with his musical aspirations. In particular, he learned to identify
birds solely through their songs or cries: 'It was [Delamain] who taught me to
recognise a bird from its song, without having to see its plumage or the shape
of its beak.'

..the visit to Delamain
proved a life-changing experience. Delamain inspired Messiaen to pursue his researches
in a more systematic way. The results can be seen in the surviving birdsong
notebooks, the Cahiers de notation des
chants d'oiseaux, in which Messaien started to collect his observations
from nature..

Messaien went on to compose Réveil des oiseaux and Hill and
Simeone [5] include a quote from the composer about this work:

"In Réveil des oiseaux [...] there's
really nothing but bird songs [...], without any added rhythm or counterpoint,
and the birds singing are really found together in nature; it's a completely
truthful work. It's about an awakening of birds in the beginning of a spring
morning; the cycle goes from midnight to noon: night songs, an awakening at
four in the morning, a big tutti of birds cut short by the sunrise, forenoon
songs, and the great silnce of noon.."

You can hear the piece in this video
clip [7] and it is interesting that it follows a sequence of bird song through
a day, perhaps in homage to Delamain's Days
and Nights of Birds.

I find the link between Delamain
and Messaien fascinating: a great composer and a wonderful writer both
communicating about Nature and the pleasure that it gave them. Thank you
Standen, and the National Trust, for giving me a chance to tell the story.